Irrigation Rehabilitation in Riau Accelerated, 18,453 Ha of Rice Fields to be Irrigated

Minister PU Dody Hanggodo (photo: PU)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Public Works (PU) continues to accelerate the rehabilitation of irrigation networks in Riau Province to increase the reliability of water supply while encouraging agricultural productivity in order to strengthen national food self-sufficiency. The program is targeted to provide irrigation service benefits to 18,453 hectares of agricultural land in Riau. Irrigation network rehabilitation is carried out in five districts through the Regional Authority Main Irrigation Network Improvement and Rehabilitation Program based on Presidential Instruction (Inpres) Number 2 of 2025.

Minister PU Dody Hanggodo said that the existence of an optimally functioning irrigation network is one of the important factors for maintaining the sustainability of agricultural production. Therefore, the government continues to ensure that water availability can reach agricultural land, including areas that have had limited irrigation services.

"The PU Ministry ensures that the water in dams, dams and rivers can flow to the farthest rice fields. We are rehabilitating irrigation areas to be the authority of the center, province, district and city because there is an Irrigation Presidential Decree Number 2 of 2025 which allows us to work on irrigation authority of non-central government," said Dody while reviewing the rehabilitation of the Irrigation Area (D.I.) Rawa Sawah in Komang Island Village, Sentajo Raya District, Kuantan Singingi Regency, Riau, Tuesday, August 4.

According to Dody, the rehabilitation of the irrigation network will increase the reliability of water services for agricultural land. With a more secure water supply, farmers are expected to have certainty in regulating planting patterns, so that planting intensity and production can be increased.

In Kuantan Singingi, D.I. Rawa Sawah is one of the rehabilitation locations in the implementation of Presidential Decree Number 2 of 2025 Phase III. The irrigation area has a raw area of 471 hectares, with a current functional area of 129.2 hectares.

Rice productivity in the region is currently in the range of 3.5-4.5 tons per hectare with a crop index (IP) of 100-200. Through the improvement of irrigation networks, the government targets an increase in water service reliability, so that land potential and agricultural productivity can continue to be optimized.

The rehabilitation work of D.I. Rawa Sawah includes the rehabilitation of a channel along 430.5 meters, the normalization of a channel along 1.2 kilometers, and the rehabilitation of one unit of a culvert along 56 meters.

The work package is targeted to provide irrigation service benefits of 125 hectares. The improvement of the network is expected to make water distribution more efficient while reducing water losses along the channel.

Overall, the rehabilitation of seven irrigation areas in Kuantan Singingi Regency cost Rp. 14.84 billion. The program is part of the implementation of Presidential Decree Number 2 of 2025 which is directed to accelerate the repair of irrigation networks to support the food self-sufficiency program.

The program includes the rehabilitation of irrigation areas in five districts in Riau. In addition to seven irrigation areas in Kuantan Singingi, the program also includes seven irrigation areas in Siak Regency, 11 irrigation areas in Rokan Hilir Regency, 17 irrigation areas in Indragiri Hilir Regency and 11 irrigation areas in Meranti Islands Regency.

The total budget for the implementation of the program in Riau reached IDR 107.28 billion. When all stages of work are completed, the rehabilitated irrigation network reaches 429.42 kilometers.

In detail, the rehabilitation in Phase I reached 242.44 kilometers, Phase II along 182.45 kilometers and Phase III along 4.525 kilometers. Meanwhile, the benefits of irrigation services produced reached 18,453 hectares of land, consisting of 15,236 hectares in Phase I, 2,534 hectares in Phase II and 683 hectares in Phase III.

According to the Ministry of PU, increasing the reliability of irrigation infrastructure not only has an impact on the availability of water for rice fields, but can also encourage agricultural productivity and regional economies.

Through the acceleration of the rehabilitation of irrigation networks, the government hopes that water infrastructure will be able to provide certainty for farmers in increasing production while strengthening national food security.